Beyond the Petrol Pump: The Nuance of Petroleum in Your Skincare Routine, a skincare reckoning.
Recently, I have been grappling with my thoughts about products containing petroleum jelly. Anyone who reads this blog is aware of my deep love and respect for the matriarchs in my family. And the reason I have been grappling with petroleum jelly is that I was blessed with another great matriarch in my life, Nombini, the woman who raised me, a stalwart in my family whom I loved dearly. She used Vaseline on her face every single day of her life, and her skin was absolutely glorious.
From Oil Majors to Yoga Mats: My Journey to Nuance:
When I talk about petroleum, it is not from the perspective of the petrol we pour from the pumps into our cars, it's from a place in my life which was really hard. I worked in the shipping industry and the corporate world. I was part of a firm that served as an agent for the oil majors. It wasn't a good time, I suppose, mostly because I wasn't in a good space. I found the corporate world at that time to be stifling. It was a male-dominated world, and trust me, whoever said men can't be petty needs to rethink that statement. My funniest memory of this is when battling an opponent, and I don't use that word lightly, conspiring to hinder a woman in the industry, when faced with the outcome, all he could say was, 'Keren is ageing so badly!'
Mostly, deep down, I was struggling with the industry I was in and the apparent disregard for the natural world. The corporate world never resonated with my sense of wonder and appreciation for the beautiful planet we live on, nor did it nourish what is deeply meaningful to me, or sum up my love for AYA Balm and the beliefs on which AYA Natural Skin is based.
When I finally found myself in a place where I chose to leave the shipping industry, I ended up embarking on a long and great search for my own true rhythm. It was like a pendulum from one extreme to the next, from a two-pack-a-day girl and copious litres of Diet Coke to a complete and utter health nut, dedicated to finding a better and healthier space to live in. I went on yoga retreats, became a yoga teacher, opened a yoga space, hosted workshops, met lots of “green spiritually evolved hippie types”, and in the midst of it all, I realised that exchanging one extreme for another is only a recipe for trouble. Today, looking back, I wonder if my initial position around skin care ingredients, which was polarising and didnt leave room for exploration, was a result of the time I spent serving the oil majors.
I recall the early years when I first discovered my wannabe green warrior spirit, and I would discuss petrolatum, petroleum-derived products, and ingredients. I always pictured myself powerfully standing on my soapbox, and I would state, ‘You might as well stand under a petrol pump for the value it adds to your skincare.’ I have come a long way from that, but is it a black-and-white issue, or is it a nuanced discussion? Like everything, the issue is clear, and the resulting options of choice create confusion, making it challenging to find a cohesive way forward that aligns with your own values.
The Vaseline Paradox: A Personal and Public Inquiry
Anyway, to get to the point of this blog, there is always a point (I just take the long, winding road because it's more scenic). Victoria had magnificent skin until her last breath, and yet her daily use of Vaseline is the complete antithesis of everything I believe about skincare. How does that work, and do I need to reevaluate my position on petroleum derivative ingredients, given their ubiquity? The question is, can you really avoid them in skincare? If it is good enough for our car, it's good enough for our skin, said no one ever!
And so I went online to research vaseline and people’s usage of it. Unfortunately, I ended up on Reddit, generally such an ‘unhealthily’ unfiltered space, but it does shed insight. Lo and behold, how many people swear by vaseline as the only go-to. One person said that their dermatologist told them that using plain Vaseline at night for an hour on your face is the best serum you'll ever find. They tried it and were raving about it. I also found a YouTube video with two dermatologists who refer to it as a hero ingredient. So, I went out and asked friends what they knew, and I was told about a friend of a friend who swears by it, and interestingly enough, has worked in the healthcare sector for most of their career. That one stumped me, actually; they all did.
Understanding Petrolatum: Beyond the "Byproduct" Myth
So what is petrolatum or vaseline? To be clear, vaseline is petrolatum, but not all petrolatum is vaseline, and that is an important distinction when it comes to processing and purity of a product. Petrolatum is one of the heavier, less volatile fractions left behind after crude oil is separated into various components based on their boiling points. The lighter fractions become products like gasoline, jet fuel, and LPG. This is why it's often described as a 'waste' or 'byproduct' left after crude oil has been refined to create the petrol that we extensively rely on.
This perspective often cites the principle of 'using the whole buffalo'—making the most of a finite resource rather than simply discarding it, and preventing these heavier fractions from becoming a literal waste disposal problem from crude oil refining. A well-known skincare manufacturer once used this argument in the early days, but I regret to say it has since been completely disproven and discarded. Petrolatum is not and can never be part of the zero-waste discussion, despite fitting in perfectly for a moment. When you consider the full lifecycle and the waste it creates, it is, in fact, just a horror story.
The Pervasive Reach of Petroleum Derivatives
And petrolatum, or Vaseline, is just the tip of the iceberg. The truth is, petroleum derivatives permeate the skincare industry far beyond just occlusive jellies. Once you start scrutinising ingredient lists, you'll uncover a whole family of petrochemicals hiding in plain sight. A perfect example of this is mineral oil (usually listed as paraffinum liquidum), a common base in creams and lotions. Or paraffin wax (usually listed as paraffin, synthetic wax, microcrystalline wax) found in balms and stick products, and then there is my absolute worst synthetic fragrances containing petroleum derivative ingredients with a whole host of other undisclosed chemicals listed under fragrance of parfum. Beyond these, you might also read about propylene glycol (a humectant), butylene glycol (a solvent), as well as a number of synthetic polymers (such as carbomer or acrylates copolymer) that contribute to the texture and feel of products. I wish I could say this was the end of it, but the reality is the list is endless. It’s a vast, interconnected web, and once you start looking, it becomes clear just how deeply the beauty industry is intertwined with the very 'horror story' of the oil industry."
The environmental horror story continues.
The environmental horror story doesn't end when the product is packaged. Unlike plant-based ingredients that biodegrade naturally and return to the earth, petroleum derivatives are, in fact, non-biodegradable. When you wash your face, shower, or discard a product containing these ingredients, they enter our water systems, contributing to microplastic pollution in our rivers, lakes, and oceans. These tiny, persistent particles can be ingested by marine life, potentially entering the food chain and accumulating in ecosystems. So, what initially might seem like clever resource utilisation in a refinery quickly becomes a long-term burden on our planet, pushing us further away from genuine circularity and true appreciation for the natural world.
I can already hear the argument, 'but doesn't Vaseline get absorbed into the skin? No, it doesnt, that is a common misconception. Vaseline, or petrolatum, primarily functions as an occlusive barrier, forming a protective, non-permeable layer on the skin's surface to prevent moisture loss. While it creates a wonderful seal, it doesn't get significantly absorbed into the deeper layers of your skin or bloodstream. Instead, much of what you apply will eventually rub off onto clothing, bedding, or, most importantly, get washed directly down the drain during your daily cleansing routine. And that's where its journey into our water systems begins.
The True Cost and Your Choice
There you have it, I haven't even touched on whether it is, in fact, good for our skin or not. I believe you, that you as the reader, can do that best. What I want to just reiterate is the ‘true cost’ of what is actually in the jar, where it comes from, where it goes and the jar itself. The "horror story" isn't just a metaphor; it's the environmental reality of the petroleum industry. And that is why we at AYA Natural Skin are so committed to our choice of natural ingredients and seed-to-skin principles, so that we tread as lightly as possible, taking as much care as we can to avoid contributing to environmental damage and respecting our finite resources wherever we can. What I will say is that using petroleum-derived ingredients or products will still never be my first choice, but here is the thing: I am grateful that I have a choice, and I strongly believe that, first and foremost, it is your choice too.